#remedy will be like Here Is An Outright Statement & people will be all oh my god remedy is so cool & mysterious & unknowable!!!!

[missvivisx]

I've had multiple people tell me what an "interesting theory" it is that the "thomas zane" in AWE is actually scratch & I gotta say? you all owe me 40$

[emptyblog7]

Dreamlight Adventures: Story 1 Part 2

@uva124 @chillwildwave @signed-sapphire @oh-shtars (I think the last person wanted to be pinged)

THE FOLLOWING DAY…

Phoenix woke up with the dawn, as a small bird chirped near her window. Despite having a late night last night, it was her custom to wake up early. She felt incredibly rested and refreshed from the peaceful sleep she’d received last night, nearly forgetting what had happened the night before. Beyond this, when she was in Dreamlight Valley, there were often many chores that needed to be done before she could attend to any matters with the villagers. As she used a bit of her Dreamlight/Starlight magic to dress into one of her favorite outfits, however, a realization dawned on her.

She didn’t have any chores to do because she wasn’t in Dreamlight Valley.

Phoenix sighed as she realized that. “Right. No Valley; no chores. What can I do then?” After some thought, she exited her room and walked around, hoping for some cue on what to do.

She soon found herself in the dining hall, where Asha and Aster were just coming in for breakfast. Upon seeing them, she greeted, “Good morning, everyone!”

Aster and Asha smiled kindly as Asha returned, “Good morning, Phoenix! I wasn’t expecting you to be up so early.” She then asked seriously, “How are you feeling after last night?”

As they sat down to eat, Phoenix revealed with a shrug, “I’m alright, Asha. Lady Elwyn gave me a strange, glowing drink and fixed the cut on my eye. I felt much better after that.”

Aster exclaimed, “I know the drink you are talking about! It’s a sort of hot drink that is normally used to restore a star’s brightness. A fitting remedy, considering how pale you looked after the battle.”

Phoenix nodded and addressed Asha’s statement. “I’m a creature of habit, Asha. In Dreamlight Valley, I always wake up early to get a jumpstart on all the chores I have to do in the Valley before making my rounds with the villagers. Of course, even though I’m not in the Valley right now, the habit persists.” Remembering something, she added, “And well, even though I did have a late night yesterday, I slept so peacefully that I was completely refreshed when the dawn came. It was…like magic!”

Asha was amazed at Phoenix’ statement and was about to ask what she meant by that until…

BOOM!!

The three of them whipped around to the main doors to see Merlin rushing in, as if he was late for something. He slid into his seat, and Aster chuckled, “Running late?”

Merlin looked around at the table and sighed, “Well, I thought I was.”

Aster and the others laughed outright before Aster calmed, “You’re fine, Merlin. Since you were so quick to get here, though, perhaps I can let you organize my bookshelves in the study later?”

Merlin nodded excitedly. Phoenix couldn’t help but smile at Merlin. “There are only two other people I know who would consider that ‘fun’, and both are in my Valley.”

Merlin shrugged, “Aster taught me a fun way to organize his books, and I eventually put my own spin on it. It’s amazing what you can learn when you’re organizing.”

Aster shook his head in amusement. Then he turned to Phoenix and asked, “What chores do you attend to in your Valley?”

Phoenix revealed, “This might be strange to you, but it seems every night, various bits of debris just…appear out of thin air that can only be cleaned up by my ‘Royal Tools’, as my Merlin calls them, which can only be wielded by someone who bears and wields Dreamlight magic.”

Asha guessed, “AKA, you.”

Phoenix nodded and continued, “Pieces of rock jet up in almost every part of the Valley, wildebeest bones appear in the Sunlit Plateau, coral in Dazzle Beach, and giant stumps and ice spikes in the Forest of Valor and the Frosted Heights, respectively.” Then, though hesitant, she added, “There is one debris that isn’t like the rest, though, and requires my Dreamlight magic alone to remove—Night Thorns.”

Merlin, who was listening in, asked, “What are ‘Night Thorns’?”

Phoenix had to contain her laughter. “Who knew that he’d be the one to explain it to me when I got back to Dreamlight Valley for the first time?!” She then addressed Merlin and explained, “Night Thorns…well they are a mysterious and evil type of plant that seem to only spring up in one biome at a time. If left unchecked, they can suck a villager’s memories away, as well as nearly destroy the whole Valley. Only my Dreamlight magic can remove these Thorns.”

Aster’s eyes lit up as he remembered something, “That reminds me…” he then formed a ball of Starlight magic in his hand—rather smaller than before—and sent it to Phoenix. Like before it entered her body and made it pulse a few times before subsiding.

As Phoenix felt the Starlight magic boost what little Dreamlight magic she had inside her, she exhaled in relief. “Thank you, Aster. I really am grateful for how you’re doing this.”

Aster nodded in acknowledgement, “Anytime, Phoenix.”

As they ate their breakfast, Asha soon caught Phoenix countenance, which seemed to have darkened from her explanation of the Night Thorns. She wondered to herself, “I wonder what about these Night Thorns is troubling her.”

When the meal was finished, Asha, Aster, and Merlin were about to go and start their day, when Asha noticed Phoenix standing awkwardly by the table, unsure on what to do. Asha smiled understandingly and urged, “Why don’t you come with us? We were recently informed of several disputes and problems that arose recently, and we need to prepare to address them.”

Aster caught on to what Asha was suggesting. “That is a marvelous idea, Asha!” Turning to Phoenix, he added, “We understand that the lack of activity for you seems rather foreign; perhaps helping us with these judgements could help alleviate that.”

Phoenix was shocked at this honor. “Are you sure? I know very little about your people. I’m not sure I’d be of much use in determining judgements for the people.”

“Nonsense!” Asha declared, “I think you’d do just fine!”

“And considering your heart for your own villagers,” Aster added, “I’m confident you’ll provide excellent judgements.” Then he urged, “Come, the people will be arriving soon.”

Phoenix obeyed and followed the two of them to the throne room, where two thrones stood at the head, and a royal blue rug ran from the thrones to the door. The rest of the room was pretty simple, with vases filled with flowers unfamiliar to Phoenix on either side.

As they came to the thrones, Phoenix stopped short as she heard Asha hum. Asha turned to Aster and called, “Aster, don’t we need something else there?”

Aster studied the thrones for a moment before his eyes sparked in realization. “Oh of course! We are missing one more, aren’t we?”

Phoenix was confused, “Missing what?”

Aster turned to her and, momentarily avoiding her question, asked, “Phoenix, what symbol does your Village stand under?”

Still confused, Phoenix revealed, “It’s…rather simple actually.” She produced a small, misty version of her Village’s symbol, which was the basic look of Dreamlight magic itself, and said, “It’s basically three diamonds ascending from another in height and size.”

Aster studied the symbol for a second before he was satisfied. Turning to Asha, he asked, “Shall we?”

Asha affirmed, and the two of them fired their magic at the empty spot next to Asha’s throne. Phoenix watched with surprise as both of their magics constructed an identical throne and adjusted the other two thrones to make them all centered in the room. Once finished, Aster fired a thin flare towards the head of the chair, which burned the Dreamlight Valley symbol into the center.

The two of them looked at their handiwork with satisfaction, and Phoenix couldn’t help but gape at the addition of a third throne with her friends! Asha turned to Phoenix and began to lead her by the arm to her spot. “Come on, Phoenix! The people are nearly here!”

Phoenix let Asha lead her to her new throne, speechless at the gesture. She sat down in awe and looked at the rest of the room; the view from here was so strange to Phoenix, as her rulership of Dreamlight Valley was entirely different from here. She turned to Asha and Aster and stated sincerely, “Thank you so much for this honor, my friends. This…I hope I will prove worthy of it.”

Before Asha or Aster could answer, a guard came in and declared, “Two families have arrived, your highnesses! They’ve come for your help to dispute a matter of importance.”

Aster answered, “Send them in, my friend.”

The guard did as he was told, and the two families entered the room. Both of the families were of descent size, one having two young children, and the other having three children that were considerably older than the other family’s children. The only other difference between the two families was that one had both parents, while the other had only the mother.

After they paid their respects to Aster and Asha, Aster greeted, “Good morning, friends. What seems to be the problem?”

The father of the older children declared, “Your highness, I’m sure you know about my family business in selling only the finest fruits for the people of Rosas and—” he stopped short when he noticed Phoenix in a spot next to Asha and he stuttered, “Pardon me, but who is this stranger?”

Phoenix tensed inwardly from the unfamiliarity, but Asha revealed, “This is Phoenix, Johann. She is a visiting ruler of a different land, and we have invited her to help with today’s matters.”

The father was surprised, “Well…this is quite unusual.”

Aster responded, “Considering where I used to be located, Johann, I can think of other things that are far more unusual than our inclusion of Phoenix.”

Johann conceded, “You have a point, my king.” He then recollected, “Anyways, my family has served the people of Rosas only the finest produce for many years.” He then glared at the other family, “As of recently, however, I have come to find that many of my produce has gone missing, and the trail of evidence leads to none other than Mrs. Fern’s home! I found small bits of fruit that are unmistakable to me around her home, and I demanded that she’d pay for it. She, however, denies that such an action ever took place and has yet to pay up.”

Mrs. Fern declared, “Johann, you know good and well that I would never do such a thing, and my children have never had the urge to steal anything from anyone!”

Johann retorted, “I thought I knew, until I saw evidence!!”

Mrs. Fern replied, “Then you mis-saw your evidence!”

Before the argument could get out of hand, Aster calmed, “Johann, Mrs. Fern, there shall be no bickering in our court!”

One of the smallest children of Mrs. Fern peaked out fearfully from behind her skirt and caught sight of Phoenix. Phoenix noticed that the child was staring at her and gave her a gentle smile. In response to this, much to Phoenix’ surprise, the child bolted from her mother and towards Phoenix. The court and the families watched with utter astonishment as the child threw her arms around Phoenix and gripped her tightly in almost fear.

As Phoenix slowly wrapped her own arms around the child, she nodded for the other two to continue the ruling. As they did, she slid off the throne with the child in her arms and enfolded her wings around her in comfort. Phoenix soon relaxed with the child in her arms and asked softly, “Hey, little one. What is your name?”

The child ignored the question and simply blurted softly, “I did it.”

Phoenix was a little stunned by the declaration. “What?”

The child shook with fear. “I took the produce from that man’s stand. My family had no food, and my mom had no job, so…”

Phoenix groaned at the story and enfolded the two of them tighter than before. She massaged her back in comfort as the child whimpered, “I’m so scared!”

Phoenix lifted the child’s face to face her as she answered in a whisper. “I know. This is pretty scary, and that man seems pretty angry. I know you wanted to help your family, but stealing food has created more harm than good right now.” The child’s face fell, but Phoenix added, “But, you can help them by revealing what you did. That way, your mom isn’t falsely accused.”

The child thought for a moment before gripping Phoenix’ jacket and pleading, “Can you help me?”

Phoenix nodded with a smile and sat back on her throne with the child on her lap. She then tapped Asha’s arm and whispered the situation in her ear. Surprise flashed across her face before she softened towards the child and squeezed her hand in comfort. Turning to Aster, she interrupted his conversation for a moment to whisper what Phoenix had told her. He looked at Asha with concern before turning his gaze to Phoenix and the child, who was avoiding the king’s face. Aster rubbed his chin in thought before he arose without a word and came to Phoenix’ place. He asked for the child, and with Phoenix’ encouragement, the child came to Aster, who lifted her up into his arms.

Having her hand tightly in his, he turned to the families and declared, “I think we have half of the matter resolved, my friends.” Facing Mrs. Fern squarely, he revealed, “I’m afraid one of your children did steal from Johann’s stand, Mrs. Fern. Your daughter, Gracia, confessed it to Phoenix here in private.”

Mrs. Fern groaned, “Oh, my dear Gracia!”

Johann declared his victory. “You see, your highnesses?! I was right!! That Mrs. Fern and her children have cost me a pretty penny for all that fine produce!”

Mrs. Fern gasped, “Are you saying that I made Gracia do this?!”

Johann shrugged, “If the shoe fits.”

Aster had had enough of this. “Alright, that’s enough, both of you!” He let the silence settle for a bit before addressing Johann. “Johann, you and Mrs. Fern were brought before us to settle a matter so that peace would return, not so that you could cause trouble in our court!” After some thought, he adjusted his hold on the child before declaring, “Let me discuss this with my wife and friend, and we will bring you our judgements as soon as we can. For now, wait outside.”

The families agreed and began walking out of the throne room. Mrs. Fern, however, stopped short and looked to Gracia to follow her. Aster let the child down but hesitated to let her go with her mother outside the throne room, where a certain, hot-headed stall owner he knew would also be. He had Gracia wait for a moment before approaching Mrs. Fern. “Mrs. Fern,” he began kindly, “Your daughter has a good heart; she tried to alleviate the lack that your family had, though it was in the wrong way.”

Mrs. Fern nodded, “I know. I tried to not let them worry, but…”

Aster nodded in understanding and asked, “With your permission, I would like Gracia to stay with us while we make our decision, since I don’t trust Johann to remain civil and kind in his dealings with this.”

Mrs. Fern answered, “Of course, your highness! She seemed pretty taken by your new friend.”

Aster nodded his thanks. “That she is, Mrs. Fern.” Mrs. Fern then left, and Aster rejoined his wife and friend, who stood towards the middle of the room. When he met them, he asked, “Any ideas on this case?”

Asha mused, “Well, we know what happened to Johann’s produce now.”

Aster agreed as he watched Gracia move into Phoenix’ right wing, fascinated that she had feathers. “You are right, Asha, but I can’t simply allow Johann to rub that truth in Mrs. Fern’s face, much less her children.”

Asha crossed her arms in thought. “You have a point, Aster. Johann will want them to pay for the loss and the ‘disgrace’ his business has supposedly suffered.” Asha then turned to Phoenix and asked, “What do you think, Phoenix?”

Phoenix looked up at the two of them before thinking about her answer. “Gracia wanted to help her family but caused something bad to happen, but she is just a child! However, Gracia seems to have brought to light a pressing need that Johann might not even consider helping with. Her family is in need. What if…”

Aster tried to urge Phoenix out of her thought process. “Phoenix?”

Asha calmed, “Let Phoenix process.”

Phoenix shook her head and faced the two of them squarely. “It’s fine, Asha. I may have an idea.” Placing her wing around Gracia, she proposed, “Gracia may’ve been the thief, but she is just a child! What could we expect to do with someone like her?” Aster and Asha nodded in agreement, and Phoenix continued, “Even though what she did was wrong, her action does reveal her family’s pressing need. Her mother has no job, and thus, her family has little to no food.”

Asha asked, “What do you suggest?”

Phoenix sighed, “If Johann had a better heart about this, I’d suggest that Gracia’s mother go work for him, but since he is what he is, there has to be a better job somewhere that Gracia’s mother can obtain to sustain her young children.”

Aster’s eyes lit up at what Phoenix was suggesting. “You might be on to something, Phoenix. Why don’t we bring the families in and declare our decision.” Asha and Phoenix agreed and went back to their thrones as Aster urged the guards to bring the families in again. Once that was done, Aster rejoined the others and addressed Phoenix. “Phoenix, why don’t you deliver this ruling to the families. It was your idea, after all.”

Phoenix’ heart jumped at the prospect. “Are…are you sure, Aster?”

Aster nodded, “Positive, Phoenix. I think I speak for the both of us when I say, we trust you with this one.”

Phoenix, though nervous, agreed and turned just in time to see the families reenter. Aster then declared, “Johann, Mrs. Fern, we have reached a verdict on this circumstance you both find yourselves in. For this one, however, I will turn it over to our friend, Phoenix.”

Taking it as her cue, Phoenix arose and had Gracia wait by her throne before approaching the families. With a deep breath, Phoenix began, “Mrs. Fern, your daughter revealed to me her deed in private, but that wasn’t all she revealed to me. What did you used to do before you lost your job?”

Mrs. Fern thought for a moment before answering, “Well, I worked in large fields with a family that was quite kind to me.” She laughed at a memory, “They always said I had a way with plants, and I always said that it was the soil they planted on.” Her countenance soon fell as she recalled, “However, the husband became sick and died a while ago, and the wife had to leave the kingdom to find better work, leaving the field to overgrowth.”

Phoenix was intrigued at this bit of information. Turning to Aster and Asha, she asked, “Do we have anything to offer Mrs. Fern?”

Asha thought for a moment before revealing, “We do have a field outside of the city that is attended to by quite a few workers. However, we could use another hand, especially in the planting and harvesting seasons.”

Aster couldn’t help but chuckle at something. “Harvest especially! There is so much gain from the planting that the workers bring home a part of the harvest as a part of their payment!”

Phoenix then declared, “Then if Aster and Asha agree, you, Mrs. Fern, could take a job at their field. You’ll be paid well and even provided the food you need and the money for other things you don’t have!”

Aster and Asha agreed to the motion, and Mrs. Fern brightened at the verdict. She grasped Phoenix’ hands in sincere thanks and said, “This is most generous of you, your highnesses!”

Seeing this all play out, Johann cried angrily, “But what about the profits I lost because of that woman’s thieving daughter?! What about my due in this situation?”

Phoenix turned to Aster and Asha for approval, and they nodded in urging. She then faced Johann with a serious gaze and declared, “Young Gracia is forgiven of her theft.” Johann stuttered in surprise, but Phoenix continued, “What Gracia did was wrong, but she is only a child!” Turning her back on Johann, she added, “And, from what I’ve seen from her, she is very sorry for what she did. Now that her mother has a job, she will not be stealing food anymore.”

Johann finally burst. “But that’s not fair! I lost money because of that girl and—”

Phoenix had had enough of Johann’s rants. She whipped around and cried, “Johann! Our decision is final, and no amount of your rants will change that. The simple fact that you are pushing an actual condemnation on the child suggests a good plenty of things that betray the type of man you are. Just take an honest look at Gracia and her family, and perhaps you will find it within you to give grace to those who’ve wronged you!” She then walked back up to her throne and sat down, concluding a bit calmer, “Until then, you will have to be satisfied with the fact that your ’justice’ hasn’t been administered.”

Johann couldn’t find the words to answer Phoenix, but he looked to Aster and Asha with pleading glances, only to be met with their firm stares. Johann’s gaze fell down to the floor in defeat, and Aster declared, “This case is dismissed. Johann, you and your family may return home. Mrs. Fern, you and your family may follow one of my guards to the field. There, you should be able to find the head gardener, who will help you get acquainted with the tools and techniques necessary to succeed.” Mrs. Fern nodded excitedly and thanked the three of them sincerely before her family followed after the guard. Johann, however, reluctantly left with his family with a twinge of bitterness in his face.

Once the throne room was quiet and empty, Phoenix exhaled, letting the tension in her joints melt away in the silence. Asha placed a hand on her shoulder and complimented, “You did great, Phoenix!”

“My wife is right, Phoenix,” Aster replied. “That ruling you decided was perfect!”

Phoenix chuckled, “Thanks, you guys.”

Right then, another guard came in and announced, “A merchant has arrived to discuss a rather…fishy matter.”

Aster nodded in acknowledgement and looked to the other two. They showed that they were ready, and Aster answered the guard. “Bring him in; we are ready for his case.”

SOME TIME LATER…

Phoenix descended some steps until she came into a more rustic hallway, with a rough wooden door on one side and a place that looked like a kitchen on the other side. She, Aster, and Asha had finished all the judgements for the day, and Phoenix had taken leave of Aster and Asha, wanting to explore a bit more. Asha had suggested that she go spend some time with Dahlia and the others and that they were in the kitchen on a lower level. Phoenix had agreed to the plan and went her way. She turned a corner and came into the kitchen, revealing the seven friends busy doing a variety of things.

Dahlia looked up from her roller when she noticed a new shadow cast, and her eyes brightened when she saw Phoenix enter. “Phoenix! Good to see you! Enjoying Rosas so far?”

Phoenix came to the counter Dahlia was at and answered, “Rosas is a very nice place. Despite the crisis over our heads, I have been enjoying this place.”

Gabo smirked a little and leaned against a barrel, “You mean a certain beast that doesn’t know when to quit?” Without waiting for an answer, he added, “And can we just take a moment to point out the fact that Magnifico actually got inside the dome?!”

The others seemed to groan at his rant, and Simon complained, “Will you give it a rest, Gabo?! Aster and Asha have it all figured out!”

Gabo, ill-convinced, quipped, “I’m just saying: We’re doomed.”

Dahlia rolled her eyes, but then she noticed a slight pained expression on Phoenix’ face. She addressed her in a whisper, “Hey, don’t listen to Gabo. You handled yourself pretty well against Magnifico last night, despite your current state.”

Phoenix sighed, “I know. I just wish I could—” she then blinked a few times when she realized what Dahlia was referring to. “Wait. Dahlia, how did you know about last night?”

Dahlia answered with a slight smile, “I was making a late delivery for someone who lived close to the docks when I first noticed you confronting Magnifico and blocked the dock’s opening. When he attacked you, I rushed to alert Aster and Asha so that they could help you.”

Hal then added, “I came with Dahlia for the delivery run and saw what happened too. That took guts for you to face Magnifico head on like that.”

Dahlia agreed. “Yeah, thanks for sticking up for Rosas against Magnifico, Phoenix. I know this kingdom isn’t your realm, but I know we very much appreciated your efforts to protect the city.”

Phoenix smiled a bit, “Of course!”

Gabo then remarked, “Just don’t let this become a habit, alright? Magnifico is ultra-powerful, and you aren’t getting as much of a magical boost to power all your bells and whistles. Don’t. Get. Cocky.”

The room fell silent at that declaration, and Phoenix turned to Gabo in surprise. This was new information to her. “I thought I was getting all the magic I needed from Aster.”

Right then, Hal punched Gabo’s shoulder and spoke quietly through her teeth. “We weren’t supposed to talk about that!!”

Gabo rubbed his shoulder but answered matter-of-factly, “You agreed to shut up; I didn’t.”

Phoenix was getting confused, “What are you talking about, Gabo?”

Before he could answer, Dahlia grasped Phoenix’ shoulders and urged in a rather awkward way, “Hey, Phoenix! Why don’t you come and help me get some eggs from the chicken roost?” Without waiting for an answer, Dahlia lead Phoenix by the arm away from the kitchen and into the chicken roost.

Once the door closed, Dahlia went to start picking eggs, but Phoenix stood at the head of the room by the door with a look of amazement. What could have been so secret that the others wouldn’t let Gabo tell her?

After a period of silence, Dahlia picked up a rather large egg and exclaimed, “Goodness! Safi will be proud of you little chicken!”

The chicken squawked in response, and Phoenix faced Dahlia head on. “Dahlia, what are you guys not telling me?”

Dahlia hesitated mid-pick at the question before faking a laugh, “Uh…what do you mean?”

Phoenix didn’t answer but decided to test something. She manifested each of her Royal Tools one by one, checking to see if she could summon them. When she summoned her camera last, she sighed. “Good. That’s something.” She then went further and tried to form a small diorama of the kingdom of Rosas, but to her dismay, only Dreamlight mist manifested and faded out. Phoenix furrowed her brow, “That’s not right. I was able to show Dahlia and the others my Village with my magic; now I can’t even make a small picture?!”

Dahlia straightened and turned around just in time to see Phoenix manifest misty versions of clothes she owned and then try to create a sword out of Dreamlight magic. The former worked, but the latter fizzled out. Phoenix let everything disappear as realization dawned on her. “I…I don’t have as much magic as before! Aster didn’t give me the same amount this time.”

Dahlia approached her slowly with concern. “Phoenix?”

Phoenix leaned up against the door of the chicken roost and rubbed the bridge of her nose in bafflement. Without looking up, she asked, “Was this what you guys didn’t want to tell me?”

Dahlia winced at the truth and sighed. “I was carrying some boxes from the ball back towards an area close to the docks when I heard Aster and Asha talk about it. They were worried about your drive to defeat Magnifico, and Aster decided…that it would best to only give you enough magic to survive and do basic things rather than fully empower you.”

Remembering something, Phoenix mused, “So that’s why this morning’s magic ball looked smaller than before!” She looked up at Dahlia and asked, a little pained, “Why didn’t you just tell me from the get-go? And why didn’t Asha and Aster tell me about this?”

Dahlia detected the feeling of betrayal in Phoenix’ voice. She wasn’t really angry at the fact Dahlia and the others didn’t tell her the truth, she was angry at Asha and Aster for not telling her the truth. Dahlia placed a comforting hand on Phoenix’ shoulder and answered softly, “Phoenix, I’m sorry. I told the others, but I didn’t think it was ours to tell, so I made them promise not to say anything to you. Asha and Aster…I know that they just wanted to protect you.”

That struck a cord with Phoenix. “Just like my Merlin tried to ‘protect’ me from the truth about the Forgetting?! Unbelievable.” Without another word, Phoenix exited the chicken roost and walked briskly out of the castle in anger and hurt.

The other friends noticed and watched her leave just as Dahlia came back into the kitchen with a basket full of eggs. Her face showed defeat and sadness. Dario noticed and asked, “Hey, Dahlia. What’s wrong?”

Gabo answered emotionlessly, “What do you think, Dario? Phoenix found out, and now she’s mad at us.”

Simon couldn’t help but be surprised. “She’s mad at us?”

Gabo retorted, “Duh! Because we didn’t tell her the truth about her limited power supply!”

Dahlia groaned as she revealed, “I don’t think she’s mad at us, guys.” The others looked at her and she added, “I saw her face as she tried her abilities. She wasn’t mad at us; she’s mad at Aster and Asha for doing this without telling her.”

Bazeema asked worriedly, “What do we do?”

Dahlia wasn’t sure, and frankly, neither were the rest of her friends.

LATER THAT AFTERNOON…

Asha came down from the castle to visit her friends in the kitchen. Upon entering, she greeted, “Hi everyone!” She sniffed the air and gushed, “Something smells really good, Dahlia!”

Dahlia smiled slightly, “I’m nearly done with a cake recipe I’ve been trying to perfect. Phoenix helped with getting the eggs for it, so this should come out the way that I’d hoped it would.”

That reminded Asha of something. “By the way, have any of you seen Phoenix? I thought she’d be with you when she left the throne room, but…” she looked around before declaring, “She’s not here.” Then a thought came to Asha, and she turned to Gabo with a serious expression. “What did you tell her?”

Gabo, who was reclining on a sack of flour, looked up offended. “Hey! This time, it wasn’t my fault, okay? Besides, can I help that some people can’t take my candid nature?”

Safi rubbed his head in thought. “’Candid’ is a strong word for you, Gabo.”

Gabo rolled his eyes, and Dahlia moved past Asha to place the now hot pan of cake on a nearby counter. Asha caught Dahlia’s expression, and it showed a twinge of regret. Concerned, Asha pulled Dahlia aside and asked, “Hey, what’s wrong, Dahlia?”

Dahlia sighed and hesitated to reveal the issue to Asha. After a few minutes, Dahlia asked, “Did you…happen to forget to tell Phoenix anything important?”

Asha was surprised by the question. “What do you mean?”

Dahlia wrestled with how to break it to Asha. “Well, it’s just that….um…Phoenix is a little…upset…”

That confused Asha even more. “Upset? What made her upset?”

Dahlia hinted, “Well, she found out something that seemed to bother her quite a bit…and she kinda left the castle in a hurry…”

Asha wasn’t getting any closer to understanding what happened, but the last part of Dahlia’s comment worried her. She urged seriously, “Dahlia, what are you not telling me?”

Dahlia exhaled. “Phoenix found out that she was getting less power than usual from Aster, and now she’s upset.” Asha groaned and rubbed her face worriedly, as Dahlia added, “I tried to tell her that it was because you were trying to protect her, but she looked so…betrayed!”

Asha felt a sinking feeling in her stomach as she processed the news. She asked, “Do you know where she is?”

Dahlia shook her head sadly. “Sorry, I don’t.”

Asha nodded and raced out of the kitchen, hoping to find Aster quickly, all the while berating herself, “I should’ve said something to her. We shouldn’t have kept this a secret from her!”

Soon, she found herself in the lobby and saw Aster communicating with one of the guards. When he saw Asha, he dismissed the guard and came to her. “Asha, what is it?”

“Phoenix wasn’t with Dahlia and the others, and they don’t know where she went,” Asha revealed.

Aster groaned, “Oh, I hope she isn’t doing what I think she’s doing.”

Asha shook her head, “Aster, she found out.”

That took him off guard. “What?”

Asha elaborated, “She found out that you were giving her less magic, and now she’s upset because she feels betrayed. At least, that’s what Dahlia said she saw in her before Phoenix left.”

Aster’s face fell. That wasn’t good.

After some silence, Aster sighed, “I should’ve told her about this precaution. Maybe then this act wouldn’t have seemed like betrayal to her.”

Asha came to his side and took his hand in hers in comfort. “It’s my fault too, Aster. I could’ve told her as well.”

Aster accepted his wife’s comfort gratefully before purposing, “What’s important now is that we find her and see if we can reason with her.” He then formed a Starlight wisp from his hand and sent it out. As it went outside, Aster explained, “I can track my magic in her with that wisp. We follow the wisp, we find Phoenix.” Asha nodded, and the two of them made their way out of the castle and followed the wisp.

MEANWHILE…

Phoenix sat atop a large willow tree watching the fragmented horizon through the tree’s wavy branches with a thoughtful and sad expression. It was silent, for the most part, apart from the occasional chirping of a bird. She fumed over how she’d not been trusted with the truth by her friends, not once, but twice! She hid her face in her knees as she remembered, “First Merlin doesn’t tell me about the Forgetting, but the villains do; now Asha and Aster don’t tell me about this…decision they made without even talking to me! All in the name of ‘protection’!” She grunted loudly in frustration as she leaned her head back on the trunk. “I think I’ve had enough ‘protection’ for one lifetime.”

Suddenly, a strange golden wisp zipped past her face before turning back and stopping in front of her face. She cried out in surprise as she inspected her strange visitor. She went to touch it, but remembering the last time she touched something magically strange, things didn’t go well, so she retracked her hand and simply stared at the wisp. It spun and danced in front of her face. “What is it?”

Soon, the wisp stopped and darted down the trunk of the tree before circling the base of the tree at a high speed, making it look like a ring of light had encompassed the tree. This behavior confused Phoenix until she caught sight of two people coming through the long branches of the willow and towards the speeding wisp. She gasped silently and laid back on where she sat, hoping she wouldn’t be noticed. “Oh great. Them.”

Aster called the wisp to himself as Asha looked around. “The wisp led us here,” Asha stated.

Aster wandered around the tree in search of Phoenix as he answered, “Yes, it appears that way.” His eyes soon caught on to a familiar shadow on the ground.

Asha soon joined Aster in confusion. “We found the wisp, but where’s Phoenix?”

Aster cleared his throat lightly and discreetly directed Asha’s attention to the shadow on the ground. Phoenix wasn’t near the tree; she was on the tree.

Asha face-palmed before whispering. “Right. She has wings, so she can fly.”

Aster reminded quietly, “Well, technically, so can we, but I don’t think that’s the best strategy right now.”

“What do you suggest?”

Aster thought for a moment before an idea came to his mind. Sending his magic out, he caused some of the fallen leaves to swirl around before sending them up to the branch Phoenix was in. They danced in and out of the sparkly mist before catching Phoenix’ eye. When she looked up at them, her eyes widened as they circled her head before flying in place in front of her, forming a single message:

“Hey Phoenix. Mind coming down and chatting?”

Phoenix was about to send a message back, using the leaves and her own message, but remembering her present predicament, she batted the message away in frustration and sighed loudly. She spoke to herself mainly, but it was loud enough for Aster and Asha to hear. “Well, since it seems like I can’t send a message back to you, I suppose I should come down.” With that, she fluttered down and landed a few paces beside Aster and Asha.

Aster and Asha were relieved to see Phoenix, but Phoenix was giving them an even stare. Seeing this, Aster approached her. “Phoenix, I—we know you’re upset with us, and you have every right to be. I should never have enacted that precaution without telling you.”

Asha rubbed her husband’s shoulder in comfort before adding, “We should’ve spoken to you about our worries, but I guess we hurt you, huh?”

Phoenix could see how sad her friends were over this issue, and Phoenix softened. Relaxing her stance, she drew closer to them and answered sadly, “It did hurt, guys.” She then sighed as she confessed, “But part of it is because this has happened before.”

Aster and Asha looked up at her concerned. What was she talking about?

Phoenix exhaled as she remembered, “Back at my Village, a…horrible truth was revealed to me about…a certain something, and my most trusted friend chose not to tell me out of ‘protection’. However, I found out about this truth through a certain group of villains that have sanctuary in the Valley, provided they play nice.” She added painfully, “When I freed them from some large Night Thorns, they each related part of the truth in their own…’special’ way. And the worst part is I found out that my friend knew about the problem and chose not to tell me after all of it!”

Asha finished, “And you felt betrayed because of it.” Phoenix nodded, and Asha came to her and took her hands in hers sympathetically, “Oh, Phoenix. We are so sorry! We had no idea that this was such a painful issue for you!”

Aster joined the group and added, “I can understand the desire to protect those you care about, but I know that there is a right way and a wrong way.” He then faced Phoenix squarely and asked, “Would you please forgive us?”

Phoenix looked at both Aster and Asha and contemplated her answer. She could tell that they were genuinely sorry for this issue, and she knew that she couldn’t stay mad at her new friends forever. “They’ve been so kind to me! How can I stay mad at them?” She then smiled as she answered, “Of course, I do, my friends. All you’ve ever done for me here was to help me, and I know you are trying to help me here too. It’s just…the loss of power is so…”

“’Different’?” Aster answered. Phoenix nodded, and Aster empathized, “Yeah, I understand that personally.”

Asha then asked, “So, Phoenix. Will you accept the precaution? Just until Magnifico is defeated?”

Phoenix sighed as she agreed. “I will, Asha. I’m sure I’ll adjust….somehow.”

Asha and Aster smiled, thankful that the issue was resolved, and they embraced Phoenix simultaneously. Phoenix accepted them eagerly, grateful to have these new friends. This reminded her of something. “I’ll need to talk to my Merlin when I get back…”

Once the trio separated, Asha suggested, “Come on! Let’s see if Dahlia is done with that cake recipe. I’m sure she’ll let us taste-test.”

Aster agreed wholeheartedly, “That is the best idea ever, Asha! Dahlia’s cooking is always magical!”

Phoenix couldn’t help but chuckle at his use of “magical”, considering where he came from originally. She then followed Asha and Aster out of the forest and towards the castle.

As they walked, they talked amongst themselves, and Phoenix explained a bit more about her Village:

Asha had asked first, “So, why does your Village include ‘villains’, Phoenix?”

Phoenix thought for a moment before answering, “I guess because they needed sanctuary. My memory is a bit…fuzzy, but I think I had made a deal with them that if they behaved in the Valley, then they were free to live in my Village.”

“And do they?”

Phoenix shrugged, “Well enough. They don’t try to usurp me or anything, but I’ve had to intervene on a few occasions when their actions appear suspicious. Sometimes it’s an issue; sometimes it’s nothing, but you can never be too careful.”

Aster agreed, “That’s certainly true.”

PHWOOOT!!! TICK!!

A stinging sensation overcame Phoenix’ neck, and she groaned in pain before grabbing whatever hit her neck. Weakness soon overtook her, and she leaned against a tree before falling to her knees.

Asha and Aster rushed to her in concern at the sudden change, and Asha cried, “Phoenix! What’s wrong?!”

Aster then noticed a dart in Phoenix’ hand. He took it from her and inspected its contents. His eyes soon sparked in recognition, and he breathed, “Ven-vine!” He then stood up and scanned their surroundings, looking for where their ambusher was hiding.

After a few minutes, a twig snapped, and Aster whipped to his left and sent a Starlight rope out. Once it caught on to something, he pulled it back forcefully, revealing a surprised and tied up…Johann!!

Asha and Aster gasped when the ambusher was revealed. Johann, upon seeing the king and queen, stuttered, “G…good afternoon, your highnesses! A…lovely day for a walk.” Aster stood Johann up but didn’t untie him. When he was upright, a small dart gun fell out of his pocket, betraying Johann’s true intentions.

Aster faced Johann angrily. He picked up the dart gun and cried, “Johann! What in this kingdom are you doing with poison in your possession?!”

Johann groaned in annoyance, “Unless you haven’t heard, your highness, I was protecting Rosas from your traitorous friend over there!!”

Phoenix’ breath caught at the accusation. She turned to Asha, who looked at her in confusion. Neither of them understood what Johann was getting at.

Aster’s eyes widened. “’Protecting’? Our friend Phoenix being a traitor?! What are you talking about, Johann?!”

Johann turned to Phoenix with an angry expression, one that seemed to relish the knowledge he bore. He pointed to her and accused, “You entrusted this foreigner with a throne by your sides! But this woman is the very one who brought Magnifico out of his prison to trouble the entire kingdom right after she came to this realm! She has deceived you, my king, and I was going to make sure that she didn’t progress further into any secret plan she had.”

Phoenix could feel the poison run through her bloodstream, and her weakness was soon replaced with a terrible pain in her sides. She grasped her midsection and groaned from the pain as she thought about what Johann had said. None of what he’d said was true. She whispered helplessly, “I…I didn’t mean to do any of that!” Asha, who’d heard her, grasped her shoulder in encouragement, showing that she believed her.

Aster also considered what he’d been told. He turned back to Phoenix, who faced him with a pale face and shook her head, denying the accusation. Then he looked at Johann. “How did you come by this information, Johann?”

Johann cleared his throat and answered, “My son reported it to me earlier today after we got home from the palace. He had been here in the forest, fishing with his friends when he noticed the whole thing happen.”

“He was told this after he got back from the palace, eh?” Aster mused, “That’s after Phoenix made the declaration against his desires.” He asked one more question with exaggerated concern, “Oh, well then, why didn’t your son come and tell you that day?” He then glanced at Asha and Phoenix with a wink and added, “Or better yet, why didn’t he report that to us? If the safety of the whole kingdom was at stake, then that would’ve driven him to tell someone of authority about this ‘terrible deception’. Hm?”

Johann wasn’t prepared for a question like that. He stuttered, “Ah…well, he…umm…he wasn’t sure about…the…uh…”

Aster calmly let him fumble through his words, trying to format an explanation. “I knew it. A bitter citizen.”

After a few minutes, Aster raised his hand for silence. “I have heard enough, Johann. I understand the situation perfectly now, thanks to your confession.”

Johann seemed to brighten a little at that. “Wonderful, your highness.” He then tried to shimmy out of the rope he was tied to as he added, “I suppose then, I should leave the rest of the matter to you.”

Much to Johann’s surprise, Aster didn’t let go of the rope or let it loosen for him. Instead, Aster caused the rope to grow bigger and brighter until Johann’s upper torso and arms were engulfed. Johann struggled against the improved bonds, as Aster revealed, “You misunderstand, Johann. You are the one who is guilty here.”

Johann was taken aback by his claim. “But your highness! That woman—”

“Aster.”

Aster turned around to see Asha gesturing to Phoenix. The venom was working faster than usual. Phoenix’ skin was nearly as pale as snow, and she was groaning from the pain that had traveled from her sides to the rest of her body. Asha was looking at Aster earnestly; they were running out of time.

Making a plan, he created a portal to his study next to Asha and Phoenix and urged, “Go, and give Phoenix the antidote. First cabinet on the left; a bottle with bright yellow liquid.” Asha nodded and guided a weak Phoenix through the portal. Aster let the portal close and turned back to Johann with a hard look.

Johann was dumbfounded. “My king! What—”

Aster interrupted him seriously, “Johann Mettlemeyer. You are guilty of attacking an innocent woman, almost killing her with that dart!” He swept his arms out, “All because you are bitter against her and her ruling against you earlier today!”

Johann’s face turned red in embarrassment, but he tried to play dumb. “But, my king! She broke the—”

Aster cut him off again. “I and Asha already knew about that because Phoenix told us herself! It only broke on accident, and Phoenix has enough trouble as it is accepting that it was an accident without someone going around and declaring what she—supposedly—did wrong!”

 Johann was silenced at that, but his countenance still showed bitterness.

Aster was silent for a moment as he considered his options. Johann was silenced, but he clearly didn’t look sorry for his action. “I may need to talk to his family about this. Johann is going to spend some jail time for his actions against my friend.” With that, he faced Johann squarely and declared, “Let’s go, Johann. You will be spending some time in the jails for your assault of my friend, but before that, I am letting your family know of the situation.

Johann grunted annoyedly for the decision, but he floated behind Aster out of the forest anyways. It wasn’t like he had much of a choice.

[whitehotharlots]

It just wears you down

“I had fantasies of unloading a revolver into the head of any white person that got in my way, burying their body and wiping my bloody hands as I walked away relatively guiltless with a bounce in my step, like I did the world a favor.” -Dr. Aruna Khilanani, speaking in front of the Yale School of Medicine

"All things that begin in white folks are not infinite and eternal," Cooper said, "They ain’t gonna go on for infinity and infinity. And that's super important to remember." [ . . . ]  The thing I want to say to you is we got to take these motherfuckers out.

- Rutgers professor Brittany Cooper, speaking with The Root

Who or what should we blame? Twitter is an obvious and convenient culprit, as limiting expression to 140/280 characters lends credence to the delusion that every statement should be taken literally, that subtext and context are lies created to obscure the true, hidden, evil meanings of statements that would otherwise be understood in some other manner. Upon such a platform, demonization is all but inevitable. 

And then there’s the internet itself, the perpetual churn of content having replaced narrative and rendered the act of sustained reading something between atavistic and ableist. How many times, in any given day, do you encounter extreme outrage based solely upon a headline that is not born out by the actual content of an article? If outrage clicks are worth the same as genuine engagement, editors and publishers care only generating buzz--it doesn’t matter if anyone actually understands anything that is being said. 

But here I am falling into a lazy trap: blaming the platforms, denying the consciousness and agency of the purveyors. At a certain point, we need to admit that this is contemporary liberalism. This is a choice those of us on the broad left have made. We have incentivized this. We reward it. While we may make some subtle gestures towards distancing ourselves in extreme circumstances, this is, ultimately, what we chose to be the face of our beliefs, the leaders of our movement. 

This is eliminationism. I’m sorry, I know that sounds Alex Jones-ish, but there’s no other word for it.  I have known these people in real life. I have spoken to them outside of public forums. They are not joking. They are not exaggerating. They want to eliminate a large segment of the population.Those who insist this is a metaphor or a mere affect-generating exaggeration are full of shit.

Or... hmm... are they just full of shit? Most people aren’t that cynical, right? 

This type of discourse is tolerated/celebrated by today’s left because lefties still don’t fully regard non-white people as people. They don’t hate PoC, at least not outright, but they also don’t think they should be taken seriously.

Because if you do take a person seriously--if you regard them as a fully formed human being endowed with agency, rather than as an avatar for your political fantasies--you’re not going to nod and laugh and cheer when they tell you, to your face, that they fantasize about killing you.

An under-remarked facet of today’s elminationist rhetoric is that it’s not coming from a beleaguered majority attempting to wrest power from a brutal colonizing force. Yes, structural racism exists in the twenty-first century United States. And, yes, it is a major problem that deserves efforts toward remediation. But there’s no comparison of today’s USA to, say, Haiti in the late 1700′s, or even South Africa in the twentieth century. Making such a comparison is as contemptible and illiterate as the Canadian Truckers who said vaccine mandates were Nazism, or a public high school student who thinks being forced to attend gym class is equivalent to being jailed in a supermax prison.

But such comparisons are not denounced. Oh no. They are mandated. If you were to publish the paragraph immediately preceding this one under your own name, you would be subject to public censure, denied speaking engagements and publications, and perhaps at risk of losing your job. It’s very objectively true, and that’s why it’s so unspeakable. The most punishable speech is that which convincingly contradicts prevailing narratives.

Deep down, most left-identitarians know this. That’s why they tolerate open and barely equivocal calls for their own death: things aren’t that bad here in the ol’ U S of A, so surely we won’t face any major blowups--it’s fine to pour more gas on the fire, especially if it keeps Drumpf out of office. But this misunderstands both the nature of anger and the humanity of non-white people. If a person says something, you should not default to assuming that they actually don’t mean what just came out of their mouth. If a man shoots his wife because he thinks she cheated on him, she’s still dead regardless of whether or not she actually cheated. 

And here we come to the fundamental neurosis of today’s anti-racism: the belief that everyone is dishonest and that statements have no meaning, literal or otherwise. Look at one of those struggle session Zoom meetings that got posted during Covid. You’ve probably seen footage of at least one of them--if you work in a white collar setting, especially academe, there’s a good chance you’ve participated in a similar ritual: Every white person is expected to announce their racism as if it were an AA meeting. Those that do are accepted. The few that don't are branded as the Real Racists.

That's very, very weird. 

Like, if you say "My name is Mark and I'm a racist," that makes you not a racist. But if you say "I'm not going to admit to beliefs I don't actually possess," that means you must actually possess those beliefs. The only way to avoid censure is to performatively admit to the transgression that warrants censure.

This is distilled cynicism of the most malignant sort. Humans are by nature capable of conceptual distinction. We realize that if X is defined in opposition to Y, admitting to X does not actually mean you’ve admitted to Y. If we were incapable of grasping this realization, there would be no language. There would be no society. There would be no humanity. 

What I’m getting at is, the white people cajoled into making their struggle statements don’t actually believe what they’re saying. Most are probably operating under duress, just hoping to get this shit over with. The true believers view it as a purification ritual, absolving themselves of sin by admitting to sin. And the handful who are naive enough to assert dignity are shunted out of the workforce, made to go live under a bridge where they belong. 

And... jesus. This has been a theme of my recents posts, which have become more infrequent because all of this just seems so hopeless. There’s a simple question that’s sitting in front of everyone’s face but no one seems to have enough guts or decency to ask it: do we really want to normalize dishonesty? To this degree? Why is lying such a fundamental part of everyone’s worldview? Do we think this is going to end well?

Even if you can rationalize it, even if you honestly think this is just social progress and creating a society of violent, paranoid tattletales is the only route to equity, are you not capable of grasping the consequences of your demands? They’re not hidden. They’re in plain sight, as far away from your physical being as your phone is from your face. We’re calling for destruction. We are calling for mass violence. This isn’t a silly thought exercise. This is the real world, and this will end in horror. 

[shini--chan]

Yandere England HCs

I remember somewhere around here in my inbox somebody requested yandere England hcs. If I recall correctly, there handle was @hehehhewaitwhat  Sadly, the ask has vanished from the box, but I still recall receiving it! So here you go:  

Yandere England

Arthur would be one of the yanderes that would play it cool at first. No cool isn’t the right word – it is cold. He would believe in keeping a tight control on his emotions, least they take over him and he is no longer his own master. All in all, a very good idea, it is just the matter of execution that matters – Arthur would be doing this in a very unhealthy way. He’d bottle up his feeling on a large part, refusing to analysis them and locate the source, not to mention expressing his emotions in healthy ways. And here would be where the yandere tendencies start to blossom.

It would result in all his ignored and unacknowledged feelings for you start to seep through in the most eery ways, ways that would be borderline toxic. What could have potentially been love would become twisted and wrapped, some of Arthur’s other issues just amplifying this. In the end, he wouldn’t be able to prevent himself from either manipulating you into his web, or outright kidnapping you.

The insistent burning in his veins never ceased, rather it grew even worse when you weren’t close to him. It was magma rolling in his veins, eradicating even more of his rational thoughts the longer he attempted to ignore it.

In an attempt to remedy it, Arthur turned the water in the shower to ice-cold. A mistake on his part. It had gave a sharp contrast and thus made the concoction of emotions stand out all the sharper. It made him wonder if the only cure would be to give into them and let nature take its course.

Yet that was something he couldn’t allow. Emotions were the leftovers of a primordial past – notions that didn’t follow any logic or decency. If they weren’t controlled, then they would control.

He turned his face up to the stream of water, as if it could wash away all the sinful thoughts about you that had begun to haunt him. That was a tragedy on its own – he never could be rid of you. You would come to haunt his dreams uninvited, invade his thoughts unwelcomed. He remembered when his interest in you had just been a mere sapling. Now it was a field of weeds, a contagion that was completely out of his control and still demanded his attention.

He shouldn’t have ignored his love when it had started to sprout, for now it had turned into obsession.

Of course, he’ll try the former way first before anything else – he would know that you wouldn’t really appreciate it if he abducted you. England would turn the charm on and boy, can he be charming when he wants to be. It wouldn’t be in grand, over the top gestures – that is for amateurs. It would come in small, effective gestures that would become bigger over time – freshly picked flowers from his garden, biscuits he made himself and then he would go over to bigger presents like a dinner in a fancy restaurant. His aim would be to have you completely smittened before he would start to cut you off from the rest of the world and to mould you into what constitutes for a perfect person.

It was a fine day; the sun painting the sky in a kaleidoscope of warm colours and caused the green of the hills to become so saturated. Or maybe it was because you were in love that the world was all the more vivid, that the air smelled sweeter and the arm that was curled around your waist felt so right.

Arthur was being charming, a good-natured smile making his sharp features softer. He had taken you out to dinner tonight, a brief affair at a rustic inn out in a no-name little village. Yet the simple meal had been the best you had had in a long time.

So, with a full stomach in satisfaction in your heart, Arthur was accompanying you back home on this summer’s evening.

“My dear, that was a very wonderful day with you”, he remarked warmly, echoing your thoughts.

“Yes, it was. You couldn’t have picked a better place to go out. I would like to do such a thing again.”

He chuckled lowly at your affirmation. “Oh, love. I wouldn’t mind doing that every day with you for the rest of our lives.”

Under other circumstances, if you weren’t so smittened with him, you would realise that what he had said couldn’t be right. Good days can’t be copy-pasted on the future forever, happiness can’t be played constantly on repeat. It has to be experienced, the cause ever varied and reinvented so that it doesn’t become dull.

Yet you weren’t not in love with him. You were neither alarmed by the clinginess the statement implied or by how sappy it was. And that was exactly what Arthur wanted.

To be clear, he wouldn’t want a weak, stupid lover. There would be nothing more off-putting to him than a whiny, spineless idiot who can’t do anything on their own. In that way, you could say he’d have high standards. He’d want somebody who is a challenge, you’d be tactful in their conduct and somebody who’d have wit to match his. Arthur has a sharp tongue and even with you he wouldn’t shy away from dispensing chidings and sharp remarks. He’d also demand you have a spine of steel, that you wouldn’t simply cave in the face of danger. If you wouldn’t have these qualities, then you’d have to adopt them, and he would be never uncompromising about that.

Ironically, while he would manipulate you into having these qualities, he wouldn’t tolerate you having them to the extent would make your relationship impossible. He wouldn’t want to be taken care of in the terms of you being the breadwinner, doing business and all that. He would want to fulfil that roles for you, whether you’re a woman or a man. It would be a chronic need to provide for you, to be the dominate one in the relationship.

You sighed for the untempt time this afternoon. No matter how much you read the page of the book, the meaning of the passages eluded you. At this point, you only had a gist of what was going on and it frustrated you to no end.

Carefully, you placed a bookmark on the page that you had been busy with and closed the hard-cover novel quietly. You knew all to well that one of the easiest ways to get Arthur in a hissy fit was to maltreat one of his books. He claimed that books had to be treated with respect, because somebody had once put a lot of effort and time into writing it. A disrespect to the book was therefore an indirect disrespect to the author.

You leaned back in your chair and stared up at the decorations of the room. Arthur of course had to live in a mansion that seemingly was a time capsule for the age of Empire. Talk about being attracted to the glorious old days.

Carding your fingers through your hair, you cursed yourself. When did you get the brilliant idea to study the classics? Oh yes, it was when Arthur mentioned the benefits of higher literature while the two you had been cleaning. He had claimed that the complex characters made the reader better at socializing, at understanding that even the most despicable characters had softer sides. That it made a person for eloquent and at understanding the nuances of reality.

And of course, since you were constantly seeking to improve yourself, you had asked him if you could peruse his library. Arthur had whole-heartedly encouraged you and you knew that he would be extremely disappointed if you abandoned this chance to grow.

So, you opened the book again and reassumed the torture.

The need for dominance would be a manifestation for Arthur’s addiction to be in control. He is sort of the opinion that power is best left in his hands, and that nobody except him can properly wield it. And if he’d have the feeling that his control over would be slipping, then he would lash out. The most physical he’d get with his punishments would be caning. All in all, punishments would always be along the lines of what detention looked like in the old public schools during the Empire.

He would also have a certain image of what intelligent would look like. That would mean restrictions in your activities: no comics, no cartoons, no fizzy drinks, god have mercy on you is you have an addiction because he would have none, he says which parties you’re allowed to go to (that would be more in the beginning of the relationship), no sleeping in, no being lazy. And if you wouldn’t conform, then he’d manipulate you into doing so.

Arthur is a man who would quickly become jealous. He’d be scared if you’d be plotting to leave him, or worse, rope other’s in into helping you plunge a knife in his back. So, he would be quick to convincing you to cut of contact with people that he wouldn’t like. This would be a win-win situation for him because the less social contact you’d have beside him, the deeper your bond with him would become. Further on in your relationship, he’d convince you to rely solely on him and that other people wouldn’t be trustworthy. That he’d be the only person that would ever truly understand you, that would have your best interests at heart, that would help you grow into the best person you could be. That the world is a shit place and that you should be grateful that he is there to shield you from it. In order to encourage that last one, he would allow you to watch the news, extensively.

If wooing you into being with him wouldn’t work, then he would coerce you into a relationship. However, he wouldn’t do anything drastic such as threatening your loved ones, rather the threats would be hidden, or he would present himself as the best option of getting you out a ditch (such as financial issues). He’d try his best to construct the situation so that you would be inclined to trick yourself into thinking you wanted it. Kidnapping would be a last resort for him.